Vermaelen rallies the troops

Defender Thomas Vermaelen has urged Arsenal to put their San Siro nightmare behind them if they are to get the season back on track with FA Cup victory at Sunderland on Saturday.

GettyImagesThomas Vermaelen has called on his team-mates to bounce back in the FA Cup on Saturday

The Gunners were thumped 4-0 by a well-drilled AC Milan side in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie, which all but put paid to any hopes of progress.

A place in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup - which is now the only trophy Arsenal have a realistic chance of winning - would certainly be a welcome tonic and renew belief.

"When you are a professional you put the bad things that happen behind you," Vermaelen said. "We will have to learn our lessons from what happened in Milan, but it is important at times like this to remain mentally strong and focus on the next game."

While the second leg at the Emirates Stadium in a fortnight is almost redundant, Vermaelen insists the players owe it to the Gunners' fans to produce a performance.

"The only thing we can do is remember that we've still got another game to go. Now we have to show some pride and give 100% in the return leg," Vermaelen said.

"We have to give something back to all those Arsenal fans who came all the way out here to this stadium, here in Milan, only for us to disappoint them. We must think of them now because what happened was not good. The only thing we can do is give them a good result in the home game."

Despite a testing playing service, with the turf on the flanks at the Stadio Guiseppe Meazza having only just been relaid, Arsenal were simply not good enough in every department and were not able to limit the damage.

No side has recovered from such a first-leg drubbing in the history of the Champions League.

Midfielder Mikel Arteta called for Arsenal to make an early breakthrough when the teams meet again in an attempt to launch the most unlikely of recoveries.

"I will never say never in football because you never know," he said. "If we score two goals in the first half at the Emirates then it is game on. However, it will be very difficult to get through and we all know that."

Goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny also feels if Arsenal can come out of the blocks quickly then there could still be hope.

"It is not impossible to come back, but it is going to be very difficult," he told Arsenal Player. "We showed [in the 7-1 win] against Blackburn how good we can be if we are on the front foot, and if we manage to score an early goal then anything can happen.

"We have quality attacking players and we can score goals so why not? But we have to realise that it is going to be really, really difficult."

Szczesny urged his team-mated to regroup and deliver a performance when their domestic campaign resumes - with arch rivals Tottenham set to head to the Emirates Stadium on February 26.

"We are full of belief that we can still have a successful season," the 21-year-old Poland international said. "The Milan defeat is a big blow for us, but I am confident we will pick ourselves up and do our best in all the games we have coming up."

Cesc: Wenger lowered asking price

By ESPN staff

Barcelona midfielder Cesc Fabregas has continued his impassioned defence of Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, insisting the Frenchman is the only reason he is now playing for his boyhood club.

GettyImagesCesc Fabregas has much respect for his former boss Arsene Wenger

• Barcelona: Fabregas worth £53m

Fabregas, who has made a flying start to his second stint with the Catalan giants, had to bide his time before being granted a move back to Barcelona, after the two parties took over a year to reach an agreement over his eventual £25 million initial transfer fee.

Wenger is still widely criticised among the Spanish club's fanbase for 'abducting' Fabregas as a youth player, but the 24-year-old insists that is an unfair assessment - revealing that it was actually Wenger who played a crucial role in forcing down Arsenal's asking price so he could leave.

"That is the wrong picture of him, had it not been for him, I would not now be a Barca player," Fabregas told El Pais. "Without him I would not have made my debut by 16, played in the final of the Champions League at 18 and been team captain by 20.

"Without him I would not be a Barca player now, he convinced the owners of Arsenal, who would not sell under any circumstances, to lower the price."

Returning to Barcelona having come up through their fabled La Masia academy before heading for London, Fabregas admits that he still has some work to do to get up to speed with his team-mates, both tactically and technically.

"I feel I still have much to learn, this team is highly mechanised and there are things I have to catch up on particularly in defence," he said. "I have never seen a team that is so focused on the attack-defend transition - playing against Barcelona is very complicated but playing at the club is not so easy and that is the challenge.

"I honestly feel that at times I may hinder them, but they are good at fixing it and hiding it, I must adapt to them and learn.

"It is the most beautiful thing I have seen in my life, all you hear is the ball going - tap, tap, tap - I have never seen so much training at this level."

Observers had initially suggested that, with the likes of Xavi, Andres Iniesta and Lionel Messi already in the squad, Fabregas would have to bide his time and wait for first-team opportunities. So far that has not proven to be the case, with Fabregas slotting in at a number of positions in most games, but he is willing to make way if any of the three start to get frustrated with being asked to make way.

"It is clear that only players like Xavi, Iniesta and Messi could complain about a lack of playing time, and if they did complain I would respect that, so I will play when I play," he said.

arsenal leyton orient

Arsenal

5 : 0

Kick Off:

19:45:00

Half-Time:

3 : 0

Full-Time:

5 : 0

Date:

03/02/2011

Leyton Orient

Gunnerz5 - Funny bloopers R us

Henry: I want to come 'home' to Arsenal

By ESPNsoccernet staff

Arsenal legend Thierry Henry has revealed his intention to return to the club, saying: "If, one day, they want me, I will come back. When, I don't know, I just want to be back."

GettyImagesThierry Henry became Arsenal's all-time leading scorer before joining Barcelona in 2007

Henry, 33, scored 226 goals and earned the adoration of the Gunners' faithful during a successful eight-year spell with the club, before moving on to Barcelona in 2007.

The striker had some success at the Camp Nou but his time there was ultimately frustrating as he struggled to make as significant an impact on the Barca side, and in 2010 he moved on to MLS team New York Red Bulls.

Henry is contracted to the Red Bulls until 2014, but after having a taste of life back at Arsenal in January, when he trained with Arsene Wenger's side to mainatin his fitness during the MLS off-season, the former Gunner is happy to entertain talk about a possible return.

"I love the club," Henry said. "Unfortunately we know I had to leave but although I left Arsenal you never really leave. Whenever I go back I feel like I have gone home.

"It goes without saying I would love to go back there. I hope one day I can go back. I love that club and I just want to give as much as possible to them, after what they gave me."

Whether Wenger would ever welcome Henry back as a player remains uncertain, as it would be at odds with his policy of nurturing the club's young talent - though Wenger did sign veteran Sol Campbell for a second time last season.

A coaching role would appear a more likely route should Henry return to the Gunners, and he even suggested he would be willing to put himself forward as a candidate to replace Wenger when he eventually leaves the club.

"I know the day Arsene leaves is going to be a difficult one and I don't know who can replace him," Henry said. "That is going to be hard but if, one day, they want me I will come back. When, I don't know, I just want to be back."

Wenger - Wilshere can handle the fame

By Chris Harris

Jack Wilshere can avoid the traps of the old English culture, according to Arsène Wenger.

When the Frenchman arrived in north London in 1996, drinking was a popular pastime within Premier League squads. The introduction of better diets and advanced training methods have changed that but, as you'd expect with wealthy young men, there is still temptation.

The media coverage of football and footballers amplifies everything - on and off the pitch - but Wenger believes that Wilshere can avoid the excesses of some of his predecessors in the English game.

"The future will decide that," said the manager. "One of the things you need to handle in England is the media projection, the fame, money. Everything excessively in an excessive way.

"If you make a mistake in your off-the-field life it's in excess in the papers. If you play well it's in excess in the papers. If you don't play well it's in excess as well so you have to be able to handle the passion of English football.

"He looks to have his feet on the ground and still lives with his family who will help him to deal with that. It's not easy and I'm not sure that I would be able to handle that at 19. Until now Jack has and I'm confident he will have a great career."

Wilshere was just four years old when Wenger took over at Arsenal. And according to the manager, English culture has changed a great deal since the mid-1990s.

"When I arrived here in October 1996 you would look around at the players during breakfast and you look around today and it has completely changed. The drinking culture still exists for some people when they are young but in France that exists also," he said.

"You can open any paper today and you will see a different diet in there and that has an influence on people.

"The whole culture has changed in England. People are more health conscious now. People like Lee Dixon and Steve Bould could see with the influx of foreign players that things should change. Every year gained was vital for them."